After a two-year hiatus, World of WearableArt is bringing back the beloved Bizarre Bra category. Sarah Nathan speaks to Sarah Pollok about the fashion and politics behind the everyday item and why designers are thrilled to see it return. <\/p>\n
\n In 1984, when Jean Paul Gaultier first showed lingerie-as-outerwear during
\n the runway show of his Fall\/Winter \u201cBarb\u00e8s\u201d collection, it would have elicited more than a few gasps. Bras had been part of women\u2019s fashion for almost a century, but they were to shape and never be seen. Then, Madonna appeared on stage for her global Blonde Ambition tour in 1990 wearing a black suit jacket and, once that was peeled off, a pink corset and bullet bra custom designed by Gaultier. Decades on, the visible, styled bra has never fully left fashion.\n <\/p>\n
It\u2019s also never been an item of clothing without complex tensions. It\u2019s intimate yet public, political yet personal, expressive but also oppressive. It\u2019s also what makes it such a fascinating category for designers to tackle, says World of WearableArt\u2019s head of competition, Sarah Nathan.<\/p>\n
Madonna wearing a Jean Paul Gaultier conical bra corset on her Blonde Ambition Tour in 1990. Photo \/ Getty<\/p>\n
When did the Bizarre Bra category first run, and what was the inspiration behind it?<\/p>\n
Dame Suzie Moncrieff dreamed up the idea for Bizarre Bra back in 1995, and it quickly became a cornerstone of the competition, being featured 16 times since. It is Suzie\u2019s trademark \u201cglorious rebellion\u201d mindset \u2013 finding ways to reinvent and reinterpret the ordinary into the extraordinary. It was a genius idea that immediately manifested joy, celebrating art on the body in wonderfully theatrical ways.<\/p>\n
Why did World of WearableArt decide to bring the Bizarre Bra category back this year?<\/p>\n
While it might feel like a long time, it\u2019s only been three years since we last saw Bizarre Bra on stage in 2023. Every two or three years is a good rhythm \u2013 it allows us to offer designers a range of other exciting challenges in between, while also delivering variety in the audience and show experience. But we can\u2019t go too long without it … it\u2019s so incredibly popular with audiences and designers alike.<\/p>\n
What is it about the bra specifically that feels worth returning to as a category over introducing another accessory?<\/p>\n
It works on so many levels that other accessories don\u2019t. There\u2019s the functional aspect of how it is worn and presented on the body, but more importantly, it is the intimate relationship between art and the body, which is central to WOW. It sits literally close to the heart and often inspires designers to use it as a platform for messages that are significant to them. At the same time, it can be cheeky, controversial or challenging. And of course, nothing provides more fodder for pun-based names than a bra \u2013 hats and shoes simply don\u2019t hold the same special appeal!<\/p>\n
World of WearableArts Head of Competition, Sarah Nathan. Photo \/ Supplied<\/p>\n
The bra exists in a multitude of tensions: practical yet decorative, expressive yet gendered and socially expected, personal yet politicised. How do you feel these tensions play out in both the entries designers create and the judging of the category?<\/p>\n
That perspective is exactly why it is such a successful section, and why it has remained relevant over the years when perhaps it could have been dismissed as an outdated cliche. It is the designers who have grasped these tensions and made them work for them. They use the unique brief to create narratives they want to explore on a smaller scale. We see themes of the struggle for personal empowerment, mental health, the challenges of motherhood, discrimination, the environment, and ageing \u2013 alongside, of course, many, many joyful themes as well.<\/p>\n
What has made for a \u2018winning\u2019 bra in previous years?<\/p>\n
One of the best parts of my job is to sit in the judging room each year with Dame Suzie Moncrieff. As we were completing Preliminary Selection for Bizarre Bra this year, we were again challenged by the exceptional standard of entries and the decisions that needed to be made, so time and again she would come back to \u201cis it bizarre enough?\u201d Which harks back to the essence of the section. A bra could be interpreted in so many ways from a design perspective, but this design brief is about letting imagination run riot and challenging definitions of convention, gender, functionality and even rationality.<\/p>\n
Other factors that can contribute to a winning design include a meaningful relationship between the design and bust or chest, as well as a clever pun-based idea \u2013 which is where Kiwis really excel.<\/p>\n
What has the response been in the creative community about the category returning?<\/p>\n
Huge \u2013 as expected. Designing for Bizarre Bra is not only fun but also offers two important practical pathways. It\u2019s a great entry point for first-time designers who may feel hesitant about committing to a full-scale garment. Equally, for more experienced designers, it can be a manageable way to stay involved in years when a full entry isn\u2019t feasible \u2013 avoiding the very real Fomo of not participating.<\/p>\n
Interestingly, we\u2019ve seen a significant increase in interest from international designers this year. In the past, they may have been slightly puzzled by the category \u2013 but they clearly got the memo this time.<\/p>\n
Eyes Up Here by Rebecca Bond. Photo \/ Stephen A\u2019Court<\/p>\n
What has been your favourite entry into the category over the years, winner or otherwise?<\/p>\n
Impossible question of course, but I will share a few favourites.<\/p>\n
In 2023 Rebecca Bond designed Eyes Up Here. It was brilliant on a number of levels. It was a trio of spinning discs with graphics that produced a mesmerising optical illusion and was a great performative piece. But the concept wasn\u2019t just about female stereotypes \u2013 it was about recognising depth in humanity, the beauty of diversity, and the richness of unique perspectives. <\/p>\n
In 2018, Wendy Moyer created Something Fishy: A Man Eater Double Feature. It pushed at the limits of size and scale but still worked. A riot of colour and sculptural form depicting two very hungry sharks. <\/p>\n
Something Fishy A Man-Eater Double Feature by Wendy Moyer from Mexico. Photo \/ Stephen A\u2019Court<\/p>\n
On the more subtle and intricate end of the scale was Singel & Clive, by Anna Zigel in 2023. It is a miniature replica of an antique sewing machine, replete with spools and sewing tools. A tribute to the craft and all who practise it. <\/p>\n
Several bras from the WOW collection will be exhibited at Wellington International Airport in the lead-up to WOW 2026, so people visiting the city can pick favourites of their own.<\/p>\n
World of WearableArt returns to Wellington from September 17 to October 4. <\/p>\n
More local fashion<\/p>\n
From city-centric style to slow fashion practices.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After a two-year hiatus, World of WearableArt is bringing back the beloved Bizarre Bra category. Sarah Nathan speaks…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":465279,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[2246,1443,74,1863,4057,14645,22404,43753,6757,14227,13116,11111,156,45062,1438,36567,78,185,1553,89505,111,139,69,1118,135,91211,1527,6967,17213,97226,1231,30534,235708,4276,377],"class_list":["post-465278","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-2246","tag-about","tag-after","tag-back","tag-behind","tag-beloved","tag-bizarre","tag-bra","tag-bringing","tag-category","tag-contest","tag-designers","tag-entertainment","tag-everyday","tag-fashion","tag-hiatus","tag-in","tag-is","tag-item","tag-nathan","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-of","tag-politics","tag-pollok","tag-return","tag-sarah","tag-speaks","tag-thrilled","tag-twoyear","tag-wearableart","tag-wearablearts","tag-why","tag-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465278","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=465278"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465278\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/465279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=465278"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=465278"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=465278"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}